Mayor Mike Duggan and City Council President Brenda Jones issued a statement Friday that calls for calm in the "senseless vigilante attack" on a Roseville man on Detroit's east side Wednesday.
The statement says:
We are asking all Metro Detroiters to demonstrate our true character by exercising calm and patience during this emotionally charged time. Earlier this week, a traffic accident that injured a young boy, David Harris, escalated into a vicious attack on the driver of the vehicle, Steve Utash, who had done the right thing by stopping to check on the boy. This senseless vigilante style attack is not the essence of who we are as Detroiters and will not be tolerated.
We are asking all Metro Detroiters to demonstrate our true character by exercising calm and patience during this emotionally charged time. Most important, we must all keep Mr. Utash, David Harris and their families in our prayers. We also are calling on members of our community who know the individuals involved in this brutal attack to step forward so that justice can be served and healing can begin.
Duggan also used Twitter to address the incident, which has provoked a racially charged reaction on social media, talk radio and in the comment sections on news websites. A police spokesman said investigators have found no evidence the incident was a hate crime.
This week a group of young men showed who they were when they beat Steve Utash. Let us show who we are in our response. #calm #compassion
— Mayor Mike Duggan (@MayorMikeDuggan) April 4, 2014
Utash was severely beaten Wednesday after accidentally hitting a 10-year-old boy who stepped in front of his pickup truck. He left his vehicle to check on the boy and was attacked by a group of men, suffering severe head injuries. Police have said Utash was not at fault in the accident.
Utash, 54, of Roseville, is hospitalized in critical condition. The boy, David Harris of Detroit, wasn't seriously hurt. Police had made no arrests as of Friday afternoon.
